


A Stranger I Remain

by DildoFaggins



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, inFAMOUS (Video Games)
Genre: Jane Foster is Thor, Multi, Obadiah Stane was a good father, War-Machine Harry (for a brief moment), Whiplash Harry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-18
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-07-14 00:00:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16028735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DildoFaggins/pseuds/DildoFaggins
Summary: When Obadiah Stane gazes into the heterochromatic eyes of a baby for the first time, a small twist in his heart sends the timeline spiraling out of control.Should this have happened that way; should that have happened this? Events unfold, whether brought together by the onset of an unknown variable or sped up via the effects of a known variable which was never meant to materialize. For better or for worse, the world has changed...And will never be the same again.





	1. On Fighting Fang and Rock

**Author's Note:**

> I love the Marvel and HP universes, but I own neither. I also have a very amateur recollection of the former, so excuse timeline screwups and stuff.  
> The idea here is to create something different - not just a rehash of the MCU or the Marvel comics with Henry-Harry in and the plotlines remaining the same. It's an ambitious one, certainly, but I hope to keep up properly.

The end of the world never looked so terrifyingly close at hand. And the worst part? He did not even know how it got to that point.

Well actually, that would have been a lie.

“If you want to live,” he barked, making all the occupants of the Great Hall jump, ‘you’d best do as I say.” With a few twirls of his staff, the ceiling of the cavernous room was slowly covered in a white, translucent shield.

They eyed him with mistrust, and he dared not say he did not deserve it. In spite of the mayhem outside the sealed doors, he _had_ killed their leader, at the orders of the madman who tipped the stone that had rolled into this massive snowball. He was not even sure he could salvage this.

The girl who he once knew as a sister in all but blood stood, and his eyes almost brimmed with tears at the state she was in – it took no lot of imagination to know how she had been treated at the hands of her captors…

Who he had delivered her to.

“We would rather die than follow you.” She hissed, and all present could tell the action had left her in no little amounts of pain. “You have already betrayed us before – not once, not twice, but three times. Three!”

“Yeah, you slimy git!” the red-haired boy next to he muttered. He had only one eye. “We’d rather face death head on that fall into your lies again!”

“I am trying to save you!” the first speaker yelled. His eyes roved over the gathered people – women, men, and children, of all ages and sizes and races – in the massively enlarged half of the place he once called home. His heart panged dully, but he had long learned to ignore such things. “I know of a place where you can be safe! Why will you not listen to me! Whatever my lord did-“

“You still believe him your lord?!” a woman barked, and he immediately identified her with her severe bun. She was otherwise unrecognizable, her entire face hidden under layers of dark spell damage. “After all that he’s done?!”

“He was mad. Absolutely barking.” He spoke, head bent. “But don’t fool yourself into thinking that you knew anything of him. His motivations were unknown to you, his methods unclear until the last second – you know nothing of his brilliance!”

“His brilliance?!” Hermione demanded, furious. “He has doomed the whole planet! We’re the only ones left! He summoned the monster that’s outside!”

“Contingency plans that would not have been executed if you did not fight as you did.” He answered calmly. “For all your brilliance, Hermione, you were always stubborn.”

“And for all your skill in wielding magic, Harry, you were always short-sighted.” She shot back. “We are all doomed now because you chose to follow V- Voldemort-!”

“Look at you! You’re still terrified of even uttering his name.” he calmly responded. “I am not here to bicker. Even the power of the Elder Staff won’t hold long against the beast – we must hurry.” Without waiting for an answer, he turned to a blanks section of the wall, and gripped the staff tight, slamming it onto the ground three times.

Fiery runes appeared in an arch, spreading and intertwining and emerging out of the wall. They melded almost seamlessly into metal, and soon there was an archway against the impossibly high wall. “I have managed to work out the arithmancy behind the phenomenon dubbed as the ‘rainbow bridge’. I will activate it now, even though I do not know where it leads – to Asgard or elsewhere-“

He was interrupted when the ground shook.

“He’s here.” Someone whispered, and the hall was soon submerged in mutterings.

“But wherever it will go,” Harry spoke loudly, breaking the hum of hushed conversations and dismayed cries, “it will be better than facing Jormungandr here.”

They all stared at him, and the silence was finally broken when someone let out a shaky laugh.

“He is already here.” A centaur spoke. “There is no way all of us would have the time to get through!”

He closed his eyes then; and sighed heavily. “I… I will buy us time.”

“My Lord!” someone shouted behind him, and he looked out into the Entrance Hall to see Antonin Dolohov come running. “He’s here, my Lord!”

“Then it is time.” Harry sighed. He turned back to the remaining life on Earth before he spoke again. “I was your hero, once. Before, when I was naïve and did not know how the world worked, you trusted me and celebrated my name. I ask none of that now, but only that you give me a chance to right my wrongs! I swear on my magic for it to be so!”

“You swore a false oath like that before.” A goblin muttered, eying him distrustfully. “What proof have we that you do not do so now?”

“My lord, we really must leave.” Antonin urged him. “Bellatrix and Remus have already…”

“They sacrificed themselves to give the ward-stones more power.” He muttered, fidgeting with the berry-like carvings on the staff. “I will go. You must get them through the portal – force them if you must. I will handle the World-Serpent.”

“This is a fool’s endeavour, my Lord.” The man cautioned, eyes prickling. Harry easily felt the regret and despair wafting off the man in waves and would probably do so even without being an empath.

He simply smirked, and walked out the door, a single stab backwards sent it banging shut, and another white shield slowly inched over it. “I was always a fool.” He muttered.

He slammed the staff on the ground, and a wide circled of the ground he was on broke up, floating into the air as he rapidly raised himself to better face the threat.

The sky was dark and stormy, thunder rolled and lightning cracked in abandon. Twisters and gigantic waves where they shouldn’t even be roiled like worms in pain. Everything was drenched in vague darkness, and yet, it was easy to see the World Serpent in all his glory. His eye itself was bigger than the entirety of Hogwarts Castle, slit-pupils and bright red – an effect of the spell woven upon it by Tom. Its scales were metallic in appearance and coloured a green that was barely a shade lighter than their surroundings, but it allowed Harry to see it, if barely.

Harry was afraid. No, not just afraid, he was absolutely terrified. He remembered the way he felt when he saw Hogwarts for the first time – and the feeling now was almost ten times worse. This serpent was big enough to wrap itself around the world completely. He had never faced anything like this before…

But…

Tom had made him promise.

He took a deep breath of the air. Smoke and ruin, it smelled like. The smell did nothing for his nerves, but the memories it invoked…

He wrapped his magic around himself and felt his signature green aura appear around his form as he rose into the air, and the platform he was on, dropped.

“I wonder, Tom.” He muttered, grasping his staff in front of him almost like a lifeline. “I really wonder, at times. _Sonorus_.”

He flared his magic, and even he was nearly blinded by the flare of magic he set off. The snake was far from being in the same position, but he at least got his attention. The serpent hissed threateningly showing his fangs that could probably be filled by thousands of Harrys, if hollow. But now, the human was focused on the job.

“Here! You big, ugly brute! _Fulgur!_ ”

Mighty lightning descended from the heavens, striking the serpent in the eye. It reared back, more in shock than pain, Harry knew, but any opportunity was a chance. _“Aqua Lant!_ ”

Around a million gallons of liquid that surrounded them rose into the air, spinning into a drill made purely of the water. With a scream of exertion, he sent it rocketing forward, where it slammed harmlessly into the scales it wore.

“The Killing Curse won’t make it twitch. Fiendfyre doesn’t work. Elemental spells are ineffective.” He ticked off on his fingers. He cut off the levitation spell when he saw the massive snake lunged, and activated it again to loop around the width of the serpent’s neck. “What the hell am I supposed to do here…? _Fulgur Tempestus!_ ”

Nearby lightning stopped as all the chaotic ionic energy in the air condensed and struck Jormungandr with the might of a freight train, sending his head to the side only just barely.

And yet, there was no score on its hide.

“What did they feed you, dragons?!” he screamed, and the sound worked to gather the snake’s attention again. He had to avoid a lunge that the irritated creature tried to score him with, but only half his mind was in the present. “Dragons have a weakness – their eyes. But even when Lucius aimed a Killing Curse there we got no reaction. Damn it – if Tom hadn’t used up all the natural magic to power up his punishments… wait, that’s it! I really hope the lot of you have left!” he screamed towards the castle, then began to focus. He waved his free hand, and runes began to appear around him. “Natural magic doesn’t just exist on the planet. _Divinitatem et peccatum. Ad servum tuum humilem, quod est libera potestas in prosilit venis cruor. Qui vocat nostro_ – “

He was cut off when he had to avoid a swipe of the viper’s head. Its tail was god knows where, after all…

He cursed. If he was going to bring down the wrath of the stars upon the creature, he was going to need a distraction.

“Okay then, you bastard, let’s get this show on the road.” He snarled. “ _Elementae Animorium Patronum_!”

For one long moment, everything grew still. TO such an extent the noise had died, that even the great serpent himself twitched.

Then everything began to move.

Air. Water. Earth. Even the very lightning itself. All of it trembled in place for another everlasting moment, then began to huddle together. Water flowed in from the lake and whatever body Jormungandr had dragged the water he had brought form. The mountains gave monstrous roars and groans and broke, rising from their fixed formation and joining the water. The air seemed to grow dense around the orb and it soon gave out five protrusions.

The snake had stared long enough, it seemed, and made to lunge for the floating elements.

“Oh no, you don’t – _Fulgur Revertebrom_!”

The lightning that was flowing towards the ball gave off a single but large arc. The ionic energy travelled too fast for the eye to track as it struck it straight on the nose, sending waves of electricity through the long-thought mythical creature’s body. Again, Harry knew he wasn’t hurt, but it had enough juice, it seemed, to give it a jolt that made it shudder in discomfort.

Harry grinned tiredly and he poured all of his concentration into the spell. The protrusions grew larger and larger as it grew might wings made of lightning and rock. Water flowed through it, bringing visible arcs of magically-segregated energy into the main body, which bulged with rock and water. Its talons were mainly made of rock, and water filled its hollow rocky head as electricity sent a spark of life through its eyes.

“Hedwig.” He breathed, almost panting. While the elemental owl was only as big as the serpent’s eye, she was a much better target for his ire. “Sick ‘em, girl.”

The golem gave off an impossible screech and took control of its own movements, flying up and up before diving down to give Jormungandr a piece of her mind.

Harry’s form slumped in mid-air. Even though the Elder Staff gave him unrivalled control over magic with a massive power boost, performing such tasks…

And he’d been battling the world itself non-stop since a month, with only bare hints of rest in between.

He straightened himself and rolled his neck. He was vaguely aware of his golem waging war – loud and terrifying destruction – around him. An ordinary golem would break apart, but this one was bound together with the Elder Staff, and it would not give away so easily.

He smiled as he looked up. “Are you watching, Tom?” He smiled. “I’m going to stop what you brought about. Your rage was as you described it – everything… everything is gone. I’m going to stop your wrath. I’m going to stop it – him, Jormungandr, and make it all right.”

He tried to imagine he could hear an answer on the howling wind, he tried to believe that there was a reply… but there wasn’t, and he felt a tear slide down his cheek.

He absently felt the connection to the rainbow bridge he opened close, and he took in a shuddering breath. Well and truly alone, on a planet of death and ruin, he spread his arms wide, both clasped around the Elder Staff as he begun the incantation once again.

“ _Divinitatem et peccatum. Ad servum tuum humilem, quod est libera potestas in prosilit venis cruor. Qui vocat nostro succurre labori agendo industria siderum ut ad me de hostibus digna poena dominum tuum statione_.” He incanted.

He felt whatever scraps of magic that were left in the air come together. The air pressure drastically decreased in the area, so much so, that his ears popped. The clouds above him cleared in a circle, and the stars far beyond the earth’s atmosphere grew more intense and easily visible.

“ _Percute Aurora_!”

The stars grew impossibly bright and heavenly light blinded him. He felt the ground erupt, and lava hissed s it made contact with water. When the light met the lava there was a massive explosion.

Harry only heard a strange surge of magic, and then there was nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation:  
> \- Divinity and sin; deliver onto thy humble servant the power that resides in your veins. I summon the energy of the stars that they may aid me in dealing unto my enemies a punishment befitting of thy station.  
> \- Dawn strike.


	2. On Having Bad Days

“Son, there will, one day, come a time when I am no longer with you.”

Little Henry scrunched his face in acute adorableness – the way that only five-year-olds could ever do. “Why will you not be with me, daddy?”

“I will have to go away.” Obadiah Stane calmly said, staring into intelligent mismatched eyes. “One day, I may go so far away that I cannot come back.”

“But why?” Henry stressed, a frown still on his face. “Why would you have to leave me?”

“Because that is the way things are.” The man said. “One day, we all have to leave everyone we love and go far, far away.”

“Okay.” Henry said. “If that is the way things are, there must be a reason it is happening.”

“Yes, my boy. That is true. Anyway, when it happens,” he said, and his tone was serious, “when I go far away, I want you to remember something.”

“What is it, daddy?”

“No matter where I am, or where you are, or what is going on in the present, past, or future, we are always connected.” He said, then smiled at pointed a finger at his heart, miming a connection with his son’s. “Because you are my son.”

“That sounds awesome!” the little boy exclaimed. “Am I connected with someone else, too?”

“That is a matter for when you’re older.” The man sighed.

“Aw man! Everyone tells me that!” Henry whined. “Like when I asked Mrs. Nancy what a particle Accelerator is, or when I asked Mr. Drew what a gyroscope is, or when I asked Ms. Justine what a singularity is! Why won’t anyone tell me anything?!” he petulantly beat the couch on his either side with his tiny fists twice.

Obadiah stared at his son, then his eyes grew unfocused as if he was seeing someone else instead. “Henry, what if I gave you all the answers to those questions?”

“Really?” Henry asked, eyes aglow! “Tell me, tell me, tell me!”

“Not so fast.” Obadiah laughed. “To get your answers, you’ll have to work very, very hard. Will you do that?”

“Anything for answers, daddy!” Henry exclaimed, beaming. “Just tell me what to do!”

“Let me see if this will work, first.” His father cautioned. “I’ll give you a bunch of books to study this week, and if you can understand – not remember, because I know you can remember everything you see or read or hear – if you can understand them, then I will tell you my plan. Is that okay?”

Henry’s face seemingly crumbled in thought. It was a long minute before the boy finally looked up and beamed at his father. “Of course, daddy! Anything for answers!”

 

_Anything for answers!_

“Anything for answers, huh, dad?”

Henry looked over his father’s coffin with a sad smile. The priest had said his piece and left a long while ago. He had waved the gravedigger off, tell him that he’d do it himself.

“I wonder what mum would have said to you if she were here today.”

That was another great mystery in his life – his father had never divulged what his mother’s name was. He had searched, of course. The first thing he did once he learned his way around computers and coding was trying to find his mother’s name. There were no results, and there was not a single Henry Stane registered in any hospital in the American continents – or at least, any hospitals _with computers_ , but he would like to think he knew his father well enough to believe he’d only be delivered in such a place.

The clouds crackled overhead, and it began to drizzle. How stereotypical.

No one had come for the funeral, of course. His grandparents were long dead, and he had no uncles or aunts to speak of. His mother’s side… well, it was a mystery. His father had many friends, yesterday, but it seemed they too did not know what lurked inside his heart.

“I’d ask you why you did it, but you’d probably distract me with a long-winded speech about the fickle nature of humanity, or cotton candy.” Henry chuckled, kneeling to dip his hand in the hole and brush the top of the casket. “Stay happy, dad. Wherever you’ll go.”

He grasped the shovel with his own hands and began shoveling mud in. With each motion, he tried to think of something he did with his father. When he made his paper plane, his first toy robot, then his first real one, his first computer… identifying constellations on a starry night… watching his favorite movie…

Tears were flowing freely down his cheeks by the time the last shovel was through, and he planted it nearby with a shove so that the grave-digger could collect it later. He wiped the back of his hand across his face, but it was of little use as the rain was falling fast, now.

“I love you, dad. You were the best father, even if nothing else – and meant the world to me no matter what.” He spoke, loud and clear. “I wish I had more time with you but-” he choked off, and shook his head as he looked up, into the rain, then closed his eyes. “Always connected, right?!” he screamed, and thunder crackled, almost as if in an answer. “Always connected.” He whispered and turned to make his way back to an empty home.

He was not expecting to be watched by someone while he paid his last respects.

“Uncle Anthony.” He whispered and caught the other man swallowing heavily. Jesus, was he that disgusting? He didn’t even do anything… but he was probably there to ridicule him like everyone else did as he carried his father’s casket on his back, alone, all the way here. There could be no other reason why the man was standing there, soaked in his expensive suit, looking like a car ran him over. Henry swiftly looked away from the man standing in front of him. “I… I’m sorry for everything dad did.”

There was silence between the two males both unknowingly unable to meet the other’s eyes, both due to guilt. Finally, the awkward moment was ended when Anthony muttered something under his breath and stalked forward. Henry shrank back, expecting a punch, but was startled when he was hugged instead.

For the first time in his life, Henry did not know what to do. Anthony and he had always been close, something that irritated his father to no end. The man loved to bounce questions off him, spoilt him with pizza, or even let him watch as he worked to get some real experience. But after what his father did… he wasn’t sure that the man wasn’t going insane.

“Uncle Anthony…?” he whispered, and damn it his voice was raspy. Was he going to cry again?

“Shut up, squirt.” The man whispered back. “Just…” the man let him go abruptly and clasped his hand instead. “Come with me.”

“To where?” Henry asked, confused.

“Home.” Anthony clarified, tugging him along as he made his way to an Audi he could see parked by the gates. “Home.”

The long ride back was anything but normal. Henry eyed the man sideways, wondering if his thoughts were right and either he himself or the other was actually going insane.

His father had killed so many when he threw Iron Man, Anthony, straight through buildings, collapsing many. A bridge was broken too if he wasn't mistaken. Henry himself was far too appalled with his father's actions himself to find anyone who judged him to be wrong. The tv in his now bank-claimed house was trained on the news these past few days, and the words the reporter dutifully spoke on national television were burned into his brain as if with a hot iron poker.

He was sure the words wouldn't leave him anytime soon.

They pulled into Anthony's house at... Actually, the clouds obscured the sky too much to make out the time. Henry hesitated when he found his door held open and a hand expectantly held out in front of him.

"Well, c'mon, the day is wasting." the older man grunted impatiently, and Henry looked up at that face with a truly confused expression. Even with all his studies, it seemed, human nature was not something that could be put down to a science. 

He took his friend's hand, then, and a shy smile made its way onto his face. 

“This will be your room.” The older man said, casting him an uncharacteristically nervous glance at him. Henry didn’t blame him. He _was_ the cause of his father’s death, after all. But the man didn’t know he had long since forgiven him. Still, it was slightly amusing to see the man squirm, so he wouldn’t be saying that to his face anytime soon.

The room was plenty blank, actually. There was a gigantic bed in the middle, covered in white. The walls were a near-white shade of grey, with modern-looking rectangular shelves on the wall. There was a white bedside table, and Henry was pretty positive that the window blinds were some color between grey and white with a pretentious name. The floor was an impressively white linoleum.

“I didn’t want to do anything you might not like, so Pepper suggested we do it all in white.” Anthony pointed out, grasping Henry’s shoulders from behind and gently pushing him into the room. “You can do whatever you want with it.” Henry looked at him in what was obvious excitement, because the other man chuckled. “Alright, but let’s get on that tomorrow… after we get back.”

The younger of the two tilted his head curiously. “We are going somewhere?”

Anthony just smirked. “It’s a surprise, kid. Just get dressed when JARVIS wakes you up. I promise you won’t regret it.”

And with that parting shot, he took his leave. Henry only then realized that it must be quite late if he was being told to sleep. Eh, he wasn’t even that hungry anyway… but he wasn’t sleepy either.

Instead of succumbing to sleep, he just walked to the window – which actually turned out to be a balcony of sorts. The moment he stepped outside, a gentle breeze caressed him from the ocean, and a small smile lit up his face.

He spent the night just watching the waves roll. He watched the sun rise, god knows how long later, and the contrast of beautiful colors soothed his heart and mind. He reached up to rub his eyes and was surprised to find them moist; he hadn’t even been aware he had been crying.

“Good morning, young master Stane.” JARVIS’ voice rang out over the hidden speakers. “It is time for you to get ready for the day. I daresay you will enjoy the schedule Mister Stark has set.”

Henry snorted at the idea of Anthony scheduling anything but thanked the AI and went through his morning routine, presently surprised to find the attached bathroom already stocked with his preferred healthcare brands. Thankfully, the wardrobe was full as well. In spite of, or rather because of, knowing Anthony and his habit of going overboard, he was rather leery of wearing any clothes the man offered simply because a single article would cost more than the average man earned in a month; but he didn’t have another change of clothes, either, so he was forced to.

He approached the dining table with caution. He wasn’t aware whether or not he was welcome fully yet, and it would be rude of him to impose. And it seemed he was right when he heard not-quite-loud arguing from the kitchen.

“… can’t bear the thought of you out, there, Tony! I’m glad you’re taking responsibility with Henry, but you risking your life every day is going to take its toll on both of us now!” Oh, so Virginia didn’t hate him? That was good – from what he heard on the news, his father was going to harm her when Anthony had intervened.

“I’m not giving up Iron Man.” Anthony stubbornly insisted. “Pepper, if it wasn’t for me, the victims in the middle east and even the Stark Industries headquarters and everyone in it would be little more than plant food. Why are you stopping me when I’m finally making a good difference?”

“Because I care about you, Tony!”  the woman snapped. “Can you honestly think that both Henry and I will be perfectly okay just standing back and watching you take on terrorists and fight greedy insane men?”

Henry flinched at that last part but swallowed and decided to not dwell on it.

“That’s too harsh, Pepper.” Anthony cautioned her. “Obbie was just misguided-”

“He had almost all the shares to your company that you didn’t!” Virginia interrupted. “He was going to name it Stane International and make it an exclusive arms factory! You saw the plans on his desktop, right?”

“I. Don’t. Care.” Anthony bit out. “If he was really insane, he wouldn’t have been able to raise Henry into such an intelligent boy.”

“Henry isn’t even involved – I’m sure he doesn’t know what his father was up to.” Virginia reasoned. “But the fact stands – I can’t … I can’t be with you if you keep up this self-destructive behavior, Tony.”

“Self-destructive?” Anthony’s voice raised a bit in his incredulity. “I am saving lives! After god knows how many have succumbed to weapons _I created_ , I am finally making a difference, and you’re calling it self-destructive?!”

“Tony, anyone can see that you’re doing it because of guilt.” The woman said, not unkindly. “I can’t say I understand, but you have to think about the people around you, too.”

There was a long silence during which Henry considered entering, but he stopped himself when Virginia spoke again.

“Tony, I can’t… I can’t love someone who I am not even sure is going to be alive the next day.” She sighed, and Henry could easily hear the raw emotion in her voice – Henry felt his heart reach out to her; such emotions could not be faked. “It kills me to see you in such a position. When I saw those bullet holes that day when your suit was being removed off of you, I nearly had a heart attack.”

The conversation after that was whispers, and Henry wisely decided to return to the room he was given and wait for a while – the two needed privacy, which he was currently intruding upon.

He soon regretted it. The bare state of his room eventually coddled him into thinking. Was Virginia right when she asked Tony to give up the Iron Man?

No person was perfect – he always thought his father had been, but the man’s tantrum across New York proved that assumption false. It was only human of Virginia to want her love (however much she had vehemently denied Henry when he teased her about it) to be safe, sound, and with her. Unfortunately, as she had so correctly said, Tony was consumed by guilt, probably when he finally saw with his own eyes what people did with his weapons. Internally, he probably wanted to balance his wrongs but doing something right. While that would be okay, eventually he would stop once he felt he had done ‘enough good’ and set himself down. Regrettably, the way he was handling it, by that time those who really mattered to him wouldn’t even be around. He was selfish, in a way – he was only helping to satiate his own thirst for doing good in the world. Unless his motivations and mindset changed soon, he was going to end up in a horrible place from where no one would be able to raise him, not even his own self.

“You heard all that, huh?”

Henry only sighed, but that was answer enough to Anthony, who entered the room and sat on the bed next to him. “Do you think she’s right?”

“Uncle, that’s honestly not my place to say.” Henry said and gauged the other man for a reaction. When he said nothing, he continued. “I think the both of you are right in your own ways, but both of you are also wrong, but I am not going to say why I think so because that would be akin to helping a butterfly out of its cocoon.”

Anthony sent him a shrewd sideways glance. “You’ve always been mature for your age.” He sighed, then flopped backward on the bed. “Anyway, she won’t be joining us today, so it’s just you and me, kiddo.” He tossed Henry what looked like a ticket carelessly. “Excited, yet?”

Henry fumbled with catching the slip and threw a playful glare at Anthony for that, but any expression that might have been on his face was replaced with glee at what he read. “We’re going to see Johnny Blaze?”

“He’s going to be jumping over a football field's length of helicopters set side-by-side.” The older man pointed out, rising to rest on his elbows. “Even I admit to being intrigued. We’ll be getting breakfast out, so let’s get going.”

Henry was out the door even before the end of that sentence.

The ride to the stadium was not as silent as the one the day previous, since Henry himself was talking away at a fast speed, amusing both Anthony and Harold. Where other children grew up idolizing Captain America, Namor, the Human Torch or other historical figures, Henry always looked to Johnny Blaze for encouragement simply because of the man’s will to persevere and never give up. He had the highest reported number of crashes, but he keeps trying and eventually succeeds in every course he attempts. It’s part of why the public likes him so much – he crashes in the most spectacular way, astonishingly receives no injuries, and then tries again another day and completes the course. He travels around the country, but visits places in the central region of the US more than the either coasts – it’s why Henry is so excited that he is present.

The three of them grab a fast- food breakfast that Tony insists on and Henry rolls his eyes at but accepts, and soon find themselves seated in one of the VIP boxes of the stadium. Henry noted the extra seats beside theirs with a hint of apprehension, but settles down relatively calmly, attempting to completely ignore the staring-match-that-is-totally-not-happening between Harold and Anthony. Now that he thought of it, though, Harold had been quite stiff while driving and not as talkative as he usually was, either. Was there some tension between the two?

Henry ultimately decided to mind his own business and focus on the then-beginning event.

The actual jump took less than ten minutes. If you thought about it, coming all the way to a stadium on the other side of the city to watch a five-minute event wasn’t very smart, but it just spoke of the man’s fame that the place was packed to the brim.

Henry stood on his feet and cheered with all the rest of those gathered when he cleared it, and on the first try! It seemed the man’s perseverance was finally paying off. A slow clap from behind them alerted him to someone else’s presence, and the three turned and sighed almost comically in unison when they recognized who exactly it was.

“Hammer.” Anthony sighed, and Henry couldn’t help but echo his sentiments. There were a few people that his father had warned him about, and Justin Hammer was one of them – the man wore incompetence like a mask, behind which worked a calculating personality with a will to get things down through any means – although his means were often inadequate and… downright stupid.

“Ah, Tony, just the man I was looking for!” the other man crowed, stepping into the private booth flanked by a burly looking bodyguard. “Gotta say, Blaze is one hell of a show, huh? Oh, wait, where’s he going?”

Henry saw from the corner of his eye that, indeed, the motorcyclist had driven his motorcycle right out of the stadium through what was supposed to be the pedestrian entrance.

“Oh well. That’s why you have to catch the opportunity when it’s in your grasp, huh?” the man continued, quite unaffected, eyeing Henry. “I don’t believe we’ve met properly, young man.” He offered a hand. “Justin Hammer, C.E.O. of Hammer Advanced Weapon Solutions.”

“Henry Stane.” The boy offered, if only not to be rude, and shook the older man’s hand. “Pleasure.”

“No, no, the pleasure is all mine.” Justin insisted, smirking. “Such talent… twenty doctorates, spread across all possible fields, am I wrong?”

“Seventeen.” Henry corrected, drawing his hand back quickly.

“Ah, yes.” The man nodded quickly. “I must say, it’s-”

“Time for us to go if we want to make that movie, huh, Henry?” Anthony smoothly interjected, laying a hand on Henry’s shoulder. “It’s such a shame, Hammer. Toodles.”

“Now, wait for just a second,” Justin said, frowning. “we were having a conversation-”

“It’s a boring one.” Anthony yawned. “Happy, aren’t you getting bored?”

Everyone turned to look at the man’s bodyguard/driver, who looked very much akin to a deer caught in the headlights. “Um… yes.”

Henry offered the man a grin. He knew very well why Hammer was suddenly interested in him. On the way here, Anthony had explained that he did not like the way the public was treating Henry, so Virginia and he gave a few interesting pieces of Henry’s history to some widespread newsmongers – such as the number of degrees he has under his belt, the purposes of his research projects, and so on. He hadn’t seen much of the effects since most of his face was hidden behind a high-collared cream jacket, but he was sure it would make a massive impact himself. He’d have done something of the sort, but it didn’t seem worth the effort. However, it now meant that in a single night, Henry went from ‘unstable child of an unstable man’ to ‘the boy who fine-tuned several vaccinations and followed up on a topic we can’t even understand’. Needless to say, attracting men of avarice like Hammer was going to be his new in.

Hammer looked appropriately indignant. “Excuse me? Henry deserves-”

Whatever supposedly-righteous rant he was going to go on was interrupted when the roof of the stadium seemingly exploded. Thankfully, it was only a small portion of the metal cover that fell away and onto one of the helicopters – targeted, then. A single figure dropped into the center of the stadium, and then suddenly there were two near-blinding curvy lined protruding from his hands and slashing through the copters around him.

“Anthony Edward Stark!” the man – for the voice was booming and clearly male – called out. “Come and face your judgment!”

Henry paled. Usually, people throwing around 'judgment' weren’t giving away band merchandise.

“Sir get down!” Hammer’s bodyguard insisted and began to bark into a Bluetooth headset he had on.

“Come out, you murderer!” the electric-whip-wielding man shouted. It was a true proof of how deep his voice was that it was heard over all the screaming and shouting currently taking place in the stadium.

Henry looked closely when he spotted a familiar look light source in the man’s chest, then examined the metal suit he was wearing with even more scrutiny. “Uncle Anthony, isn’t that an Arc Reactor?”

Said man quickly found himself facepalming. “Yes! Obbie must have-” he tactfully stopped himself after glancing at Henry. “The design must have leaked, somehow.” He continued lamely.

“It doesn’t matter. We need to get out of here!” Harold snapped. “Pepper was right…”

Ah.

So that was all the tension was about.

Anthony gave him a withering glare before taking Henry’s hand and beginning a brisk walk back to the elevator. “JARVIS, can you pilot a suit to my current location?”

“Dispatching Mark 5 now, sir.” The A.I.’s voice spoke out from the watch he was wearing. “Should I inform the local law enforcement?”

Tony was about to say something, probably along the lines of a negative reply, when Henry squeezed the man’s hand and gave him a hard gaze when he looked up to his eyes.

“Yes, JARVIS.” Anthony almost groaned out, then shook his head. “No faith.” He grumbled but didn’t complain further. “Can you get a facial recognition match from any of the CCTV cameras?”

“His face was covered by what looked like a faceplate of your armor.” Henry shook his head. “JARVIS, try looking for any cameras in the rooftop access stairwell. He has no propulsion systems, or else he would be in an elevated position to look for you easily.”

“Camera found. Accessing. Image found. Cross-referencing with known databases. Match found.”

“Well? Don’t leave us hanging, buddy!” Anthony urged, dragging Henry down the nearest flight of stairs while Harold followed.

“He is Anton Vanko, from Volstok, Russia. The village was recently destroyed by Iron Man.” JARVIS calmly said.

It brought Anthony up short, however. “Iron Man?! I’m Iron Man, JARVIS, and I haven’t destroyed any villages!”

“I am aware, sir.” The A.I. said, tone dry. “But it would provide a valid source f your technology to him. Images in the local news show the impostor fleeing the scene without several key components of the armor used, including the chest-piece. It included an Arc Reactor.”

“This is bad.” Henry whispered. “If an impostor halfway around the globe has the specs for your armor, how do we know who doesn’t?”

Anthony seemed to feel the same way if his expression was anything to go by. “JARVIS, when was the attack on Volstok?”

“Exactly two weeks ago, sir.” The A.I. replied. “In other terms, it occurred two days after you were rescued from the Afghani desert.”

“I only refined my armor a day before the attack, then – I remember it because I spent all night on it.” Anthony murmured, descending the last stair and briskly jogging outside. An inarticulate roar of rage interrupted his train of thoughts. “Now is not the time. JARVIS, where is the damned armor?”

There was a muted thud in front of them as the Mark 5 armor set landed in front of them and opened up. Anthony threw aside his blazer, kicked off his shoes, and got in almost immediately. “Get Henry home, Happy.” He ordered once the faceplate closed and launched into the air.

Henry immediately found himself being manhandled by the well-meaning driver but had no patience for it. “We can’t just leave him here!” he protested, partly because of guilt. Maybe if his father had never tried to get into Anthony’s business, this would not be happening right now.

“There’s nothing you can do!” Harold answered, and he had a point. In a battle between two mechanical suits that could withstand great damage and deal even more, he could do practically nothing.

That was when they heard a second thud and whirled at the sound. There, right where Anthony blasted off from, was another, smaller suit. It looked identical, except that this was done in a dull metallic grey and had what looked like a rattling-gun mounted on its right shoulder. It was quite obvious who it was meant for.

His phone suddenly began to ring. He was surprised to note that the number of the caller was absent, and instead, JARVIS was scrawled where it was meant to be.

“Sir had prepared this for you to use in an emergency, Master Stane.” The A.I. informed him. “I believe this classifies as one.”

Henry eyed the suit with barely concealed surprise. Anthony trusted and cared for him to such an extent? It was… what was that warm feeling in his chest?

“Henry, don’t.” Harold warned. “It’s too dangerous.”

Henry was on a crossroads, and he knew it. He somehow felt that this was a choice that was either going to make or break … something. On one hand, he could leave Anthony to possibly die, losing one of the only few friends he had left in the world. Only because he was not brave enough, he would be leaving with Harold and stay on the side-lines, worrying his lip between his teeth as he waited for good news from JARVIS. Or...

He already knew what decision he would make.

He gave Harold a sad smile and shook his head, opting to say nothing as he walked backwards, imitating Anthony by tossing aside his jacket and stumbling out of his shoes in haste, and into the suit of Armor. The inside was lined with some sort of padding to soften the blow, it seemed. He was hit by a wave of claustrophobia the moment the metal shell closed on him, but then the heads-up-display lit up and showed Harold’s devastated face.

Henry shook his head out of instinct but was surprised when the motion was not restricted in any way.

“Initializing propulsion systems.” JARVIS said, and there was a low hum of some sort as a wing icon glowed in the corner.

“Oh boy.” He cursed, as the suit went rigid in stance and he rose into the air.

“Counterbalancing weight using energy output. Preparing hovering combat mode. Initial recalibrations complete: War Machine platform has commenced complete operation.”

Henry waited, but nothing happened.

“Um… JARVIS…?” he ventured. “Why are we stuck in one place?”

“In order to maneuver in the air, you must project force in the opposite direction.” The A.I. patiently explained. “My combat subroutines will handle most of the finer work- all you have to do is point.”

A little bit apprehensively, Henry angled his palms and feet a little diagonally towards the ground.

“In order to provide a comfortable experience-“

“We don’t have time for a comfortable experience!” Henry snapped. “Get me to Anthony, and don’t care for my comfort!”

There was a moment’s pause as the AI probably considered Henry’s words, before the suit began to move on its own and shoot over the stadium wall, through the hole Vanko made, and into the stadium proper.

Or at least, it used to be a stadium.

In the few minutes Henry had been away from Anthony, every single helicopter was wrecked and ablaze, the structure almost on the verge of collapse, and slash marks covered everything else.

It seemed he had made a good call because Anthony’s suit was being slowly sliced into. Looking around in desperation, Henry saw only one way he could save his uncle.

The man’s shoulders were not protected with any armor.

“JARVIS,” Henry swallowed. He never really was a violent one, the most he ever thought of doing was whacking someone on the head – usually his father for not taking care of himself properly. But he had just lost him, and he’d do anything not to lose anyone else, “do we have anything that slices absolutely? Some sort of laser or something?”

“There are two upper-wrist mounted lasers present.” It informed him. “Be warned, they can only be fired once.”

His uncle’s armor was shooting off pathetic sparks now, but he was already aiming.

“Hurry, JARVIS! Help me slice the man’s hands off!” Henry urged, feeling vaguely constipated. “It’s the only way I can think of saving Anthony.”

There was a moment’s pause before the laser’s fired, and sliced off the man’s shoulders with almost clinical accuracy.

Anthony was able to somehow get the coils off of him (perhaps some trigger the man could press kept coiling them around his form?) and approached the now-screaming man to spray some sort of coolant on his shoulders.

“JARVIS, set me down, please.” Henry requested.

As soon as the suit landed and was open, the boy was heaving all his breakfast on the ground. Some time through it, there was a hand he could feel on his back, gently rubbing it down, but he honestly couldn’t focus on much with the smell of burned flesh in the air.

“Henry?!” Anthony’s voice sounded, and a few mechanical whirs later, the man was kneeling next to him and patting his back down. “What-?”

“Anthony, you must destroy the weapons the man has before it falls into the wrong hands.” Henry insisted between deep breaths. “You cannot afford to let t fall in the wrong hands.”

The hand on his back stilled, and he felt his… uncle’s piercing gaze on his form. At times, Anthony was far more perceptive than anyone ever gave him credit for; and he knew that he was likely thinking about his father’s efforts.

“Please.” Henry wheezed.

Anthony nodded uncharacteristically solemnly, and the Iron Man suit behind them set to work removing whatever was part of the suit from the man who was unconscious from the pain. When it was done, it leveled its hand at the knock-off’s arc-reactor and fired.

 

***

 

“What do these people even want?” he asked, wiping his forehead on the back of his hand. “Are they a part of the government or something?”

“Our personnel couldn’t find any connections.” Virginia explained, and her face looked a little pinched even through the video call. Hm. Whoever was hounding her was making her feel uncomfortable, then. “But we wouldn’t rule out that possibility either. It wouldn’t be the first time…”

“The first time?” Henry asked, shifting the call to audio and putting his phone on a nearby surface to get his wardrobe door open. “And do I have to dress nice?”

“Please do. If they’re actually affiliated with the government, it would be best to make a good impression.” Virginia said, and he had the distinct impression from the few moments of silence that followed that she was nibbling on her lower lip. “I know you’ve just been through a bad incident, but I really have no one else to ask.”

“Say no more.” Henry replied, hands flying through his options. Sure, he didn’t like what he had been seeing going on, but hey, at least he could say with confidence that she wasn’t doing it on purpose in order to spite Anthony. “You can ask me anything, and anytime, Aunt Virginia.”

“I’ll hold you to that, someday.” She warned, and then sighed. “I’ll message you the address – it’s some new restaurant downtown. Happy will take you there.” A pause. “Thank you, Henry. If it wasn’t for my cousin…”

“It’s alright.” Said boy sighed, finally deciding on a black three-piece. “I shall inform you of how it went as soon as I am finished.”

Click.

He hummed a little as he got dressed. It was extremely out of character for Virginia to hand over her tasks to someone else. This cousin must have had a really bad fall.

He dressed quickly, but properly, taking care to iron out any part of his exterior image that did not paint an image of coming from money. While he was more akin to Anthony in messiness than preferring to be prim and proper, he _was_ a Stane at the end of the day and knew how to dress to impress.

He was downstairs and out the front door a few minutes later and pursed his lips when he saw Harold holding the door open for him. The driver seemed skittish around him too…

As the mansion finally drifted out of sight, Henry managed to gather his courage and finally speak. “I know what’s going on between Aunt Virginia and you, Harold.”

It was good that the mansion was out of the way and had to take a long road to join the highway into Malibu proper because the car swerved almost out of control. “Tony and Pepper aren’t a thing, so she isn’t cheating!”

“And if I wasn’t sure before I am now!” Henry smirked. “I knew it.”

Harold managed to keep the car under control but eyed Henry in the rear-view mirror uneasily. “And is that… bad…?”

Henry shrugged. “The three of you are adults. Your sexual and romantic relations are none of my affairs.”

Harold choked as he tried his best to keep the car drive as smooth as possible.

“Honestly, I’m not sure that Virginia truly views Anthony as a potential suitor.” Henry mused, watching the high-rise buildings from the window. “But who am I to comment?”

“We don’t want to hurt Tony.” Harold explained after a few minutes, smoothly turning right. “I honestly don’t know what’s going on, but that’s the last thought I’ve had.”

“I know.” Henry nodded, then leveled his best glare into the rear-view mirror. “Because if this whole drama deal turns bad, and Anthony is subject to any emotional pain that can be avoided, I will destroy you both.”

“We are not having this conversation, Henry.” The driver huffed, keeping his eyes on the road. “You’re far too you to destroy anyone. And how did you even guess, anyway?”

“Harold, I have known you a long time.” The younger Stane sighed, fidgeting with the strap of his watch. “I very well know when you’re hiding something.”

The rest of the ride passed in silence, but in the rear-view mirror, Henry was clearly able to see Harold’s scrunched up face. Good, that usually meant he was thinking. When he pulled by the Golden Dragon, he just barely whispered a ‘good luck’ as Henry left the car and walked in.

Henry entered the restaurant and spoke to the Maître D’ for his reservation. He sighed as he shifted uncomfortably in the suit. The smell of meat, once enticing, was now nauseatingly dense even in the entrance hall, and he reminded himself that it was a Chinese restaurant, at the end of the day, even with all the pomp.

The table he was led to was a two-seater, and the other chair was occupied by a perky looking blonde. She was pretty, he supposed, and wondered whether she got this far on her looks or merits alone. When he approached, she stood and smiled uncertainly, and he leaned a little towards the latter.

“I’m agent Barbara McKenzie.” The woman said, offering her hand to him. “I’m really sorry for being insistent over the phone but our boss really wanted to speak to Mister Stark…”

Henry offered her an apologetic look. “I apologize, then, Miss McKenzie, but Anthony is currently busy with… private affairs. He has authorized me to attend in his stead if that is okay?”

The woman tilted her head as if in thought, but then nodded with a warm smile. “Of course! We’ve reserved a room at the restaurant, in fact, so if you would follow me…?”

Henry arched an eyebrow as he stood. “Right now?”

She didn’t answer him but offered him a playful smile.

He was led to a private room – he wasn’t surprised. The restaurant he was in was one that his father and he frequented often, and he knew very well that such small rooms existed on the upper floors, but they had only a small table in the center and usually two, sometimes four, seats. He looked into the room and noted that a seat was already occupied. He was gently nudged in by Barbara and the door was shut behind him.

The man in the seat was not at all what he was expecting… although, if asked, he would have been unable to explain any of his expectations. He was clearly of African-American descent and looked quite striking, but perhaps a part of that was the eyepatch he wore. He seemed completely relaxed, and Henry was almost completely sure that the place was covered with the man’s agents through and through.

“I am Colonel Nicholas Fury.” The man spoke, tone sharp and commanding, the sort he had imagined army higher-ups to speak with. “And we have been keeping our eye on you.”

Henry weighed that statement for a moment, tasting its effect. “If you are trying to intimidate me, save it.” He said, bundling his nerves to throw into a metaphorical well as he took a seat opposite the man. It was only when he sat that he finally noticed the other presence in the room, that of a blond man with Kevlar armor and… a bow. “My father was far more intimidating when he confronted those who he had no taste for. Can we get to the point?”

Nicholas stared at him for a moment, and for all his cool, Henry found that stare very unnerving. He, however, did not let it show. “The original purpose for this meeting was to discuss certain arrangements with Mr. Stark; arrangements that included you.”

Henry stilled.

“Even before he publicized your academic efforts, we already intended to approach you to consider employment with us. Your sheer knowledge base itself is something we wished to be able to rely on with the madness that goes on nowadays.” The other man explained, lifting a briefcase next to him onto his lap and popping it open. “Your employment contract.” He said, offering a rather large stapled stack of papers.

Henry eyed him in disbelief. “I don’t even know who you work for.”

“We are called the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division.” The man set forth. “Along with carrying out research on unusual matters, essentially being deployed as a covert-ops force, we work to defend our world from… unorthodox threats.”

“So… you work for the government?” Henry hedged, still not reaching out to accept the contract. “I apologize, but I will have to-”

“We are under the direct jurisdiction of the United Nations.” Nicholas interjected. “We are not bound by-”

“I do not appreciate being spoken over.” Henry spoke, interrupting the man in turn. “And if that is so, where was your organization during the events of what everyone refers to as the ‘Emasculation of Mutant-kind’?”

“My predecessor fell in line of duty when Charles Xavier was killed.” Nick replied, tone icy. “The details, you don’t need to know.”

“Trust is a two-way street, Mr. Fury.” The younger intoned, crossing one leg over the other. “If you wish for me to work for you, you’re going to have to be more… open.”

The man arched an eyebrow. “What’s stopping me from taking you right now against your will?”

“You mean aside from the fact that I will do my best to sabotage the work you give me and that you will have Anthony on your tail?” Henry asked, smirking. “I don’t believe in revealing all my cards, but I will say this much – you may find leaving this room with me… difficult.”

“I see.” Nicholas muttered, then sighed, withdrawing the contract. “Not as an employee… then as a consultant?”

“You must be in dire need of my assistance.” Henry noted. “If you are upfront about what it is you need, I can assure you my chances of agreeing will rise.”

In response, the man produced a folder from the case and slid it across the table to his guest. On opening and examining its contents… Henry gave a confused frown. “These runes…”

“Your degree in Medieval Studies and Linguistics is only one of the reasons we need you.” Nicholas admitted, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “A strange energy is another. Given that there’s a city nearby…”

Henry’s eyes never left the pages. They kept tracing one of the images… that of a strange hammer. “Alright, you have my attention.” He conceded, snapping it closed and offering the man a tight smile. If nothing else, the change in scenery ought to do him some good. “When do I start?”


	3. On Double-edged Swords

“Uncle Anthony, you worry far too much than is healthy.” Henry sighed, ruffling my hair agitatedly. “I’m still on the same continent.”

“Considering who I’m worrying about, I don’t think I worry enough.” Anthony snarked, patting my head. “And you refuse to take a JARVIS-enabled communicator with you!”

“I don’t need him to be fine.” The younger of the two answered honestly. A clearing of a throat gets his attention further. “Uncle, I think we are imposing. This is impolite. I shall see you in a few months.” I finished off, then hesitated before reaching forward to wrap the man in a hug. “Please remain well.”

Anthony was silent for a second, before hugging the teenager back tightly. “Take care. Call me at least once a day.”

Sad boy pulled back an arched an eyebrow. “That is too much, and you know it. How about once a week…?”

He sighed, stepping back. “I’ll take what I can get.”

Henry offered him a smile and a wave before turning to the awkward-looking SHIELD agents present. “Shall we proceed, Miss Kuo, Miss Augustine?”

They did not bother to verbally reply, instead just nodding and turning to board the jet. Henry followed, bearing an ominous feeling in his heart all along.

 

***

 

For Henry, this cinched it. The Hammer, capital ‘H’, was a puzzle.

The runes inscribed on it were distinctly Norse, this much he knew, but the dialect was something far stranger than anything he had ever encountered. It appeared as if this was the original language, and the Nordic equivalent was a derived version – an odd concept. However, the metal was clearly one not belonging to the periodic table, and the mystery was driving him insane.

He adjusted my glasses as he bent over my desk, eyeing the computer screen with no little agitation. It had been a whole month since he arrived at this makeshift ‘facility’, and yet had made no headway besides one word – ‘worthy’. However, Miss Walker had assured him that ‘it was more than the other eggheads had managed’. He, however, was far from placated – as a Stane, he was to be perfect in his work, and simply could not settle for merely adequate.

“Still slaving away, I take it?”

Henry smiled a small, genuine smile when he heard the voice of his ‘handler’ and turned to regard the man with the same. “Mr. Coulson. You didn’t come by, yesterday. Are you well?”

“As well as I can be.” The man assured, walking in and shaking his hand professionally, then patted his shoulder in a much more informal greeting. The two had, indeed, become close friends. “Any luck?”

“A little, perhaps. I think this portion here,” Henry gestured to the drawing of the inscription on the hammer, “means ‘whosoever’. I’ll need to reaffirm it twice just to be a hundred percent certain, but it’s a solid conclusion.”

“That’s two words. It’s progress.” The man tried to placate him with a small smile.

“Out of fifteen.” he protested. “And in a month! I’m practically going insane trying to decode this, and fate seems to find amusement in toying with me.”

“The Hammer isn’t… actually making you insane, is it?” the man asked, amusement clear in his eyes. “I don’t think we could handle you if you snapped – god knows Augustine is still on edge around you.”

“It was her fault.” I vehemently said, sighing. “She did not have to insult father like that.”

They stood that way, staring at each other for a little while, before he spoke. “Let me take you out for lunch. Maybe you just need to be out of here for a while for your mind to get some rest.”

I eyed him speculatively. “Is this an order from Fury?”

“It’s an offer from a friend.” He replied quickly, not seeming hurt in the slightest. I wouldn’t put it past the one-eyed man to tell him to do so, however.

“Alright. Let us away.”

The drive to town was short, and it reminded Henry of why the assignment was so urgent. If that Hammer was an extraterrestrial explosive or something of the sort, then… nay, it would do him good to focus on the here and now. There were trained conduit-class mutants on site and could probably mitigate most of the damage. All he could do was his best.

Phillip took him to a simple restaurant – the town was small and didn’t have much in the way of fine-dining. Henry surprised himself by ordering the cheesiest burger meal on the menu. The other got himself one too.

“I’d have thought you would go for more meat.” He offered, unwrapping his burger nonchalantly and chowing on it. The restaurant didn’t have much of an ambience, so they opted for take-away and ate in the car.

“I have never tried fast food.” Henry hedged. “I assumed the cheese will help it go down easy.”

He nodded. “Hm. Try a fry with every bite. The saltiness helps the flavor.”

The teen didn’t need it, in the end. He was extremely satisfied with his burger and I offered the fries to Phillip, who seemed surprised he would give them up. Apparently, fat-fried potato was very coveted, even amongst circles of friends.

“Thank you.” Henry offered, as the older agent started the car. “I think this helped.”

“I think I can safely say we’re good friends, Mr. Stane.” He returned, eyeing him from the corner of his eye. “I only did what another would when his friend was in visible distress.”

“Did I appear that bad?” Henry queried.

“No, but I’m told I’m good at reading people.” There was a moment of comfortable silence before he spoke again. “We’ll be getting another consultant at the site. A doctor, this time, in the field of radiology and the like.”

“Is that so?” Henry rhetorically asked. “I had wondered why there was a medical professional on site. I only have a degree that lets me consult basically, after all.”

“We thought it was high-time.” By ‘we’, of course, he meant Fury. “We need one on hand in case the strange radiation from the Hammer has any negative consequences. The researchers are wearing suits, but you can never be too careful – we have our best men and women on this, after all.”

He hummed. “Who is it – the doctor who’s coming, I mean.”

“One Jane Foster.” Phillip answered, opening the cubby and pulling out a file, handing it over to his passenger. “She’s currently in a wheel-chair, but she’s one of the world’s foremost experts. She ought to make the workforce feel safer.”

“Impressive.” Henry commented, eyeing her documents. “Her achievements are nothing short of commendable. Ah, perhaps I have found my next field of study.”

“Radiology and cancer?” Phillip asked, eyes flicking over to mine. “Do we have someone with a hero complex here, Mr. Stane?”

“I’m not the one still quietly saving limited edition Captain America collectible cards, Mr. Coulson.” The younger smirked. “I think the only one present in this car with a hero complex is you.”

He huffed. “That’s beside the point, and you know it.”

 

***

 

"Hundred and ninety-eight... hundred and ninety-nine..."

"You know, you really ought to stave off on those... what with you being human and all."

Henry looked up, blinking away the sweat that stung his eyes. A person who he had come to regard as a close friend stood there, arms on the handles of the wheelchair of another close friend. After the debacle with his father, he didn't think he'd ever be able to make friends again, not that he ever did before besides Anthony, but apparently Lady Luck finally took a shine to him, because he made many even though he wasn't even trying.

"Two hundred." He finished, leaping up from his handstand-push-up pose with ease. "Unfortunately, we all can't control light with the ease of breathing, Miss Walker."

The Conduit-class Mutant shuddered. "How many times have I told you to just call me Abby, Henry?"

"Be thankful he's not calling you Fetch instead." The wheelchair-bound woman mused. "He's been annoying Agent Drew by her codename ever since he's met her."

"It is not my fault her codename is 'Spiderwoman'." He smirked, towelling his hair off. "And when I refer to Miss Walker as 'Fetch', I wager it would not be far-fetched to say I may next wake up with my limbs missing."

Abigail's eye lit up purple for a moment. "Smart."

It was strange. Her own comrade Nix was the one who brought it up; but then again, the black woman was more happy irritating people than she was doing anything else. No, what was strange was that her aversion to the name brought up… an image. Another woman with pink hair and a dislike to a name... it was the oddest damned thing, but he could not place a name or know why he recalled it in the first place.

"Well, self-preservation is a trait that is admirable to have." Henry dryly spoke. He hung the towel around his shoulders and smiled at Jane. "Good morning, Dr. Foster. I assume the scans from the hammer check out?"

"It was as you said." Jane Foster, radiologist expert, offered with a smile. "There doesn't seem to be any side effects from exposure to the strange energy that the hammer seems to be emitting. In essence, my presence here is quite unrequired."

He shifted uncomfortably. "That is not what I meant to imply."

"I know." Jane smiled. "It's just fun watching you squirm."

"How rude." Henry quipped, winking. "And here I thought you like me for my charms."

"It's part of the package." Abigail smiled. "If it weren't for the hair, I'd swear..."

Ah. Cue awkward silence. Apparently, Henry reminded her a lot of her dead brother Brent, and it had led to a few moments such as this in the past. The young Stane did his best not to be too overbearing but the girl was a hard one not to care for. She was bubbly and overly cheerful all the time, even if her unit commander, Broke Augustine, disapproved of her forming bonds with their 'VIP Guard-assignments'. Her and the second, Lucy Kuo, were way too uptight, in his opinion.

Henry was about to break the silence when the entire place shook from the force of a massive tremor. Alarms started bearing throughout the facility.

"Fuck." Abigail swore. "C'mon, I've got to get you two to a safe location."

Henry was having none of that. "Miss Walker. You know I'm cleared for combat too." He sighed, ruffling his hair and walking to the corner of the room where his briefcase sat. If the attack during the Blaze event taught him anything, it was to always be prepared.

"Sorry, Henry, but orders are orders." She smirked. "Now be a good little duckling and get into the safe-room."

"Save it." A new voice spoke to their right. Henry turned, startled, to see Phillip standing there as if he had been so all along. "We need every hand we can get. Take care of Foster; Henry, with me."

"Let me come. I can fight!" Abigail protested. Henry was inclined to agree - if they needed every hand...

It was then that he saw Jane's forlorn expression. If there was anything the woman hated, it was being babies over. When situations such as this arose, where she had to be given special consideration, it was easy to tell from her face how she felt about her condition.

"Miss Walker -"

"It is alright, Phillip." Henry interrupted. "I am more than fine to handle whatever gets through here. Miss Walker should accompany you."

Phillip sighed. "Fury is going to kill me." He muttered to himself. "Fine. Walker, with me. Henry -"

"Worry not. No harm shall come to her on my watch." Henry swore, walking briskly to the back of the wheelchair. "I promise."

"I'll hold you to that." Jane dryly piped in.

Henry didn't stay for the squabble, although he did wonder why Nicholas would be angry over the fact that he was guarding the good doctor instead of being out on the front-lines where it was more dangerous. Hm. Odd.

He wheeled his now-charge through the facility with ease. With an eidetic memory, even something said in passing was almost never forgotten, so he recalled the location of the safe-room with ease. "Miss Foster, I do hope you're not moping."

"I'm not." The woman almost petulantly said, before visibly deflating. "It's just... I feel so helpless. I wish I could be less of a burden."

"You are not a burden." Henry firmly said. "You never were, are, or will be. Have I made myself clear?"

There was a moment's silence before she spoke. "Crystal."

The walk-jog to the safe-room was fast. Henry wheeled Jane in and stood with other panicking scientists with a couple of agents outside the door.

"Who could possibly be attacking this facility, and why?!" One woman asked in a hushed tone of her friend. It was a bit embarrassing, but he had not gotten around to knowing the names of everyone working there, only familiarizing himself with those he met or saw regularly. "The guards said they were animal-men!"

"I saw them. They came in from a space-ship!" One other woman excitedly said. What an inappropriate tone for when one is being attacked. "There were all kinds of animals... but they were upright and looked humanoid! It's as if they evolved from the animals that they had features of, like we evolved from apes!"

"Pish! How in the world is that possible?!" The first one snapped. "I'm sure we'd have heard if something like that were to happen."

"But... you don't know? There were already reports of something like that around one of the areas SHIELD watches - someplace called Wundagore Mountain."

Another tremor surged. The sound of gunfire and male yelling was now more than audible - the cacophony threatened to take over their eardrums.

"Everyone, please step back!" Henry requested, opening his briefcase and pulling out what looked like high-tech whips. With a press of a button, electric arcs began to appear along their length. "I will need more room to fight should it come to it."

Thankfully, the scientists obeyed just as the sounds of gunshots got impossibly louder.

"They're here!" One scientist frantically whispered. It acted as a cue for everyone to huddle on the opposite corner of the room. How effective.

There were more gunshots before the door was blasted from its hinges. Henry didn't waste any time and ran forward, slipping into a twirling dance that completely bisected the first few assailants. He cut up a portion of the floor and raised it when the animal-men behind the vanguard raised their gun and started firing.

"Henry!" Came Jane's voice, worried.

Said boy didn't pay her much attention. If he had to win, he would need his focus. This was the first ever combat scenario he was in, and there was a heavy fog of hesitation and fear on his mind.

He pushed it aside and surged forward, intent on trying to slash at the next few, when a bullet pierced his shoulder.

"No!"

And then there was a far greater noise, like a thousand thunderclaps condensed into one. Henry was pretty sure his hearing was out for a few minutes - even the animal-men looked a bit dazed. He turned behind to see what the commotion was all about... and froze.

It was Jane, but she was standing, her wheelchair in pieces behind her person. Garbed in about strange silver armor backed with a red cape, with a winged helmet atop her head. In her hand... was the hammer they had been studying!

"Stay away from my friend!" She yelled, and then the world once more erupted in white.

 

***

 

"They swore you would be safe!"

Henry sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose while he was on call with Anthony. Apparently, while he was out (for an entire week), the man had already been informed and was sick with worry. "I am well, uncle. I am certain you have already hacked the cameras here to make sure."

The pencil in Lucy's hand frosted over. Oh well.

"I swear, if it wasn't for this terrorist cap I'd be over there right now." The man muttered, although his voice was clearly audible.

"I will request you not to. Before you insist, must I remind you that the location of this facility is meant to be a secret, and that your appearance here would make SHIELD extremely paranoid?" Henry smiled fondly. His eye slid over to Jane's form, who was currently out cold. “I wish to stay _in silence_ while a friend recovers from the ordeal.” Apparently, scans of her person while she was using the hammer eliminated all foreign bodies in her system - her treatment for her breast-cancer was declining. The cancerous cells were part of her, so they were exempt from being eliminated on that technicality alone. The moment she and the other 'gifted' female agents had dealt with the attacking animal-human army, she had passed out cold. "Also, while I would certainly appreciate your company, I sincerely doubt my handlers will." A pause. "Or Virginia, for that matter."

"She wants to come over herself, but she's got Stark Enterprises doo-daas to deal with." Anthony informed him with little inflection. "Honestly, we're worried about you."

"I have incurred no major damage to my person." He answers the unspoken question, which was technically true. The bullet had barely touched any bone (fortunately), and another had only grazed his thigh. "Forget about me - talking about it lowers my mood." Lucy snorted. What was her problem?! "Have you discerned anything about our... leaking problem?"

"There have been eleven more attacks in the eight months you've been gone." He was told. "We've managed to backtrack and narrow the location down to... somewhere in Asia."

"I do not mean to be pessimistic, but that is too large an area to search." Henry dryly commented. His eyebrow twitched when Lucy's eyes narrowed. Where was Abigail when you needed her? "Regardless, I shall help you narrow the field when I arrive in a week's time."

"At least let me send the jet over." His uncle requested. "It will make me feel better."

Henry thought about it for a second, then sighed. "If it pleases you, I shall heed your request. But I shall not entertain any underhanded means of aiding me." He warned.

The grin in the other man's voice was evident even through the phone.  "Duly noted."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, okay, it's been a while. A loooong while. I know. It's just that I could never put to words the way I imagined this story okay g out even though I've written up a very detailed outline. Plus, Endgame hype kinda compelled me to do better. 
> 
> Anyway, I'm going to be posting the bits and pieces I can. It will be short, but I'll update all the chapters after I'm done with this monstrosity, or else it won't ever get out. After the spectacular failure that was my other fic, Collide, I want to see this through dammit.
> 
> And yay, crossovers! Infamous is one of my favorite franchises - I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to mix it in here somewhere; is it obvious that Abigail is my favorite character? Plus, timeline changes! I've dropped plenty of hints as to who, precisely, is attacking the Mexico facility, so I'm pretty sure the more astute of you will figure it out. And also, yay Jane-Thor! But if she has Mjolnir, where is the original Thor? Lots more to come, so stay tuned!
> 
> Ps - I'm going to be doing them on my crappy phone, so until the editing is over and done with, please bear with any typos!

**Author's Note:**

> Please review and leave Kudos! Like my other works, I will be posting bits and pieces and then be editing them to finalize the product, so don't think you've seen the best of any chapters so far! Cleaned up to Chapter 3 end.


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